William A. Jacobson is a Clinical Professor of Law and Director of the Securities Law Clinic at Cornell Law School.
He is a 1981 graduate of Hamilton College and a 1984 graduate of Harvard Law School. At Harvard he was Senior Editor of the Harvard International Law Journal and Director of Litigation for the Harvard Prison Legal Assistance Project.
Prior to joining the Cornell law faculty in 2007, Professor Jacobson had a highly successful civil litigation and arbitration practice in Providence, Rhode Island, concentrating in investment, employment, and business disputes in the securities industry, including many high profile cases reported in leading newspapers and magazines.
Professor Jacobson has argued cases in numerous federal and state courts, including the Courts of Appeal for the First, Fifth and Sixth Circuits, and the Rhode Island Supreme Court.
Professor Jacobson has a national reputation as a leading practitioner in securities arbitration. He was Treasurer, and is a former member of the Executive Committee and Board of Directors of the Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association, a professional organization of attorneys dedicated to protecting public investors. He frequently is quoted in national media on issues related to investment fraud and investor protection, and in the past has served as one of a small number of private practice attorneys who trained new arbitrators for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.
Professor Jacobson is co-author of the Securities Arbitration Desk Reference (Thomson-Reuters), updated annually.
Professor Jacobson is frequently quoted in the media on political and legal topics, has authored many Op-Eds in major publications, and appears on television and radio to discuss politics and the law.
A more complete listing of Professor Jacobson's professional background is available at the Cornell Law School website. The views expressed here are his own and not those of any employer or organization,
The best way to reach Prof. Jacobson is by e-mail here.
Photos from 2012, 2015, 2020, 2023. How are we doing?...
You Can't Fix Stupid: This was totally unexpected coming from Oberlin College, it's not like they have done anything similarly vindictive in the past which came back to bite them, from which they might have learned....
The Queen of New Mexico is getting defensive about criticism from the likes of -- checks notes -- Ted Lieu....
People who warned that Covid lockdowns and restrictions were the gateway drug toward abolishing the 2nd Amendment and other rights deemed 'right wing' were dismissed as conspiracy fearmongers. As with so many other things, those 'right wing conspiracy theories' have come true....
"the enjoined Defendants cannot coerce or significantly encourage a platform’s content-moderation decisions"...
"Meadows’s alleged association with post-election activities was not related to his role as White House Chief of Staff or his executive branch authority." Appeal sure to follow....
It's hard to see SCOTUS intervening at this point. So there likely will be a new map, and if it nets Democrats another seat, it could impact control of the House of Representatives. That's really what's going on here, a partisan fight over a congressional...
Now everyone is talking about ADL. But I've been speaking out against ADL for years, frustrated how ADL took a good purpose - fighting antisemitism - and weaponized it for leftist political purposes under Jonathan Greenblatt. It will be interesting to see where the ADL-Twitter...
Judge finds "no standing" to sue. Are the attempts to get judicial decisions keeping Trump off the ballot over? Of course not, but this is another sign that such attempts are likely to be unsuccessful. Hence the urging for state and local election officials to...
He's got his Hush Puppies on, and never was meant for glitter rock 'n roll....
It's not clear at this point how much of the case even will remain in state court....
Complaint: "Despite publicly claiming a storied role in the movement for gender equality, Vassar has long and privately been underpaying its female professors." Bwahaha....
My appearance on Education First NC podcast hosted by Sloan Rachmuth, regarding holding social media companies liable for designing manipulative platforms that are deceptively addictive, using mass tort products liability legal approaches: "TikTok seems like the crack cocaine of the internet."...
My appearance on NTD TV: "I don't know how [the Judge] justifies the day before Super Tuesday. Clearly that puts the defense under enormous burden to prepare their defense...
This is a speedy trial, not as speedy as the prosecution wanted (January 2), but much sooner than Trump wanted (April 2026). Trump lawyer: "We will not be able to provide adequate representation...
Project Veritas is going down, according to multiple media reports. Turns out suing James was a bad business decision. A recent court filing by Project Veritas suggests there have been settlement negotiations to end the lawsuit....
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